Texas Ranked Most Dangerous State for Thanksgiving Travel

Ahh, Thanksgiving. It's the day we gather with family and friends to give thanks for our many blessings while stuffing our faces with turkey, dressing and pie. In order to make that happen, many Americans -- 48.7 million to be exact -- will first have to travel to their destination. 89 percent of those travelers will drive, according to AAA.

To find out if traveling on Thanksgiving is more dangerous than an average weekend, a company called ASecureLife analyzed fatal crash data from across the country over three years and came up with a list of the most dangerous, and the safest, states and cities for travel this Thanksgiving.

According to the study, Texas tops the list as the number one deadliest state in the country for Thanksgiving travel. Houston, the largest city in the Lone Star State, takes the number one spot as the most dangerous city in the country for traveling on Turkey Day.

Over three years, Texas had an average of 3,516 deaths on the roads during Thanksgiving weekend -- 10 percent of the state's total vehicle fatalities.

THANKSGIVING CRASHES HEAT MAP- 2014-2016 (ASecureLife)

According to researchers, there is a 19 percent increase in accidents on Thanksgiving compared to a typical weekend and experts say nearly 30 percent of those are alcohol related crashes. Speeding is also a huge issue and is the primary cause of 28 percent of fatal accidents.

Other states on the most dangerous list include California - #2, Florida - #3, Georgia - #4, and North Carolina - #5. The five safest states for Thanksgiving travel are Rhode Island, Vermont, Alaska, Hawaii, and New Hampshire -- in that order.

All that said, it turns out Thanksgiving is actually the fourth riskiest holiday for travelers. Labor Day sees the most fatal accidents, followed by the 4th of July, then Memorial Day. Christmas comes in as the fifth most dangerous holiday for travel.